Waking up as a Demon Lord should feel epic.

  That's what I thought, anyway. You know, dramatic lighting, ominous music playing in the background, maybe a few thousand minions kneeling at your feet and chanting your name in terror.

  Instead, I woke up face-down on a cold stone floor with something sticky in my hair.

  "Ughhh..." I groaned, rolling onto my back and staring up at a ceiling that looked suspiciously like it belonged in a dungeon. Which, I realized with growing dread, it probably did.

  The last thing I remembered was... nothing. Just darkness. Then a weird voice in my head saying something about "congratulations" and "new life" and "epic destiny." Typical isekai stuff. I'd read enough light novels to know the drill.

  I sat up slowly, patting myself down. Yep, definitely not my body. This one had way better cheekbones. And pointy ears. And—

  < System Notification >

  Congratulations, Varus! You have been successfully reincarnated as aDemon Lord! Your very ownDungeon has been generated. YourStarter Skills have been assigned. May your reign be long and terrifying!

  "Oh hell yeah," I whispered, a grin spreading across my face. "It actually worked. I'm a Demon Lord!"

  I scrambled to my feet, suddenly very excited to see what kind of dark, edgy abilities I'd been blessed with. Fireballs? Shadow magic? Mind control? The possibilities were endless.

  "Open status," I said proudly.

  A blue holographic screen materialized in front of my face.

  NAME: Varus RACE:Demon (Avatar) CLASS:Demon Lord TITLE:The Newly Baked (Subject to change)

  SKILLS:

  1. Summon Yeast (Level 1) Description: Summon 1d10 units of fresh, high-quality baking yeast. Great for bread. Terrible for world domination.

  I stared at the screen.

  The screen stared back at me.

  "...What?"

  I blinked. Rubbed my eyes. Read it again.

  Still said "Summon Yeast."

  "Okay," I said slowly, trying to stay calm. "Okay, that's... that's fine. Maybe it's like a joke skill. Maybe the real stuff unlocks later. Let's see what else we've got."

  2. Oven Temperature Control (Level 1) Description: Precisely adjust the temperature of any oven within a 10-meter radius. Perfect for baking. Useless for burning down villages.

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  My eye twitched.

  3. Perfect Kneading Technique (Passive) Description: Your hands instinctively know the ideal rhythm and pressure for kneading dough. Bread made by you is always fluffy. Enemies will not be intimidated.

  4. Aromatherapy Aura (Passive) Description: A faint, pleasant smell of freshly baked bread emanates from your body at all times. Creatures within 5 meters feel calmer and slightly hungry.

  I sat back down on the cold stone floor.

  For a long moment, I just stared at the wall.

  "I'm a Demon Lord," I said flatly, "whose primary combat strategy is... baking bread."

  < System Notification >

  Quest Added: Survive Your First Week Your dungeon contains no food,no minions, and no viable combat skills. Figure it out, champ.

  "OH, YOU'RE JOKING NOW."

  I stood up, pacing the small room that was apparently my "Throne Room." It was pathetic. Like, embarrassingly pathetic. A single wooden chair that was definitely not a throne, a flickering torch on the wall, and a door that led to... somewhere.

  No minions. No treasure. No creepy gothic architecture.

  Just me, my stupid yeast-summoning fingers, and an overwhelming desire to cry.

  "Okay. Okay. Think, Varus. Think." I took a deep breath. "I'm a Demon Lord. I have a dungeon. I have... skills. Sort of. There has to be a way to make this work."

  I walked through the door and found myself in a larger chamber. Still empty. But there was a fireplace built into the wall. An old, dusty, clearly never-used fireplace.

  With an oven.

  "Of course there's an oven," I muttered. "Why wouldn't there be an oven."

  I stood there for a long moment, staring at the fireplace. Then, slowly, an idea began to form in my mind. A stupid idea. An absolutely ridiculous idea that no self-respecting Demon Lord would ever consider.

  But then again, I was a Demon Lord whose only power was making bread.

  "Summon Yeast," I said, holding out my hand.

  A small puff of smoke, and five perfect little packets of yeast dropped into my palm.

  I looked at the yeast.

  I looked at the oven.

  I looked at the empty, cold, miserable dungeon that was supposed to be my fortress of evil.

  "Well," I sighed, "when life gives you yeast..."

  Thirty minutes later, the dungeon actually smelled pretty nice.

  I'd found some flour in a chest (don't ask), some salt in a cupboard (seriously, who stocks a dungeon like this?), and a bucket of water that seemed clean enough. My Perfect Kneading technique was, I had to admit, genuinely excellent. The dough was soft, springy, absolutely perfect.

  The oven, thanks to my temperature control, was heated to exactly the right degree.

  And now, the whole place smelled like fresh bread.

  It was... cozy.

  Which was the opposite of what a Demon Lord's dungeon should be.

  I was just pulling the first loaf out of the oven—beautiful, golden-brown, crusty—when I heard it.

  Footsteps.

  Coming from the entrance tunnel.

  "Oh no," I whispered.

  "Oh no no no no."

  Adventurers. It had to be adventurers. First day on the job, no minions, no traps, no evil reputation, and some random murder-hobos were already here to "clear the dungeon."

  I looked around frantically for somewhere to hide. There was nowhere. Just the main chamber, the throne room with the stupid wooden chair, and—

  The door burst open.

  A young woman in leather armor strode in, sword drawn, a look of fierce determination on her face.

  "Fear not, citizens!" she announced to absolutely no one. "I, Lila the Brave, shall cleanse this dungeon of evil and—"

  She stopped.

  She sniffed the air.

  Her eyes landed on me, standing by the oven in my flour-dusted robe, holding a freshly baked loaf of bread.

  "...Hi?" I said.

  Lila the Brave lowered her sword, her expression shifting from battle-ready to deeply confused.

  "Is that... bread?" she asked.

  I looked down at the loaf in my hands. Looked back at her.

  "...Yes?"

  She stared at me.

  I stared at her.

  The bread sat there, warm and innocent.

  "...Can I have some?" she asked.

  And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the story of how the most feared Demon Lord in history made his first friend.